Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Leana Wen, Baltimore's Health Commissioner And Emergency Room Doctor, Tapped To Lead Planned Parenthood
The New York Times: Planned Parenthood Names Leana Wen, A Doctor, Its New President
Planned Parenthood, under fire from conservatives in Washington and state capitols, chose Leana Wen, an emergency room doctor whose family fled China when she was a child, as its next president Wednesday, picking a woman who won praise for her steadying hand as Baltimore’s health commissioner during the city’s convulsive protests in 2015. Dr. Wen, 35, grew up poor in Compton, Calif., after her family left China following the Tiananmen Square massacre just before her eighth birthday. She relied on Medicaid as a child, and in nearly four years in Baltimore has drawn acclaim for working with corporations and churches to close racial disparities in health care and sharply reducing infant mortality. (Zernike, 9/12)
The Baltimore Sun: Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen To Serve As New Head Of Planned Parenthood
She said she is leaving a job she loves in Baltimore because of growing attacks by the Trump administration and other conservatives on Planned Parenthood and women’s reproductive health rights. "I see how the single, biggest health catastrophe of our times is the threat to women’s health,” Wen said. “I am deeply troubled by how women’s health issues are singled out, stigmatized and attacked.” Wen’s departure leaves the administration of Mayor Catherine Pugh with another critical vacancy. Pugh accepted Wen’s resignation Tuesday and Wen told health department staff in a conference call Wednesday. (McDaniels, 9/12)
The Hill: Planned Parenthood To Appoint Baltimore Health Official As Next President
“As a patient, I depended on Planned Parenthood for medical care at various times in my own life, and as a public health leader, I have seen firsthand the lifesaving work it does for our most vulnerable communities," Wen said in a statement. "As a doctor, I will ensure we continue to provide high-quality health care, including the full range of reproductive care, and will fight with everything I have to protect the access of millions of patients who rely on Planned Parenthood.” (Hellmann, 9/12)
Politico: Planned Parenthood Names Outspoken Trump Critic As President
Earlier this year, Wen and the Baltimore City Health Department successfully sued the Trump administration over federal funding cuts to teen pregnancy prevention programs. She also has spoken out against the administration's changes to Title X family planning grants and the proposed domestic gag rule that would limit information about abortion that providers receiving federal money could share with patients. Just this summer, Wen joined with other cities in another lawsuit against the Trump administration's cuts to open enrollment outreach and other changes the advocates say have sabotaged the Affordable Care Act's marketplaces. (Ollstein, 9/12)
The Washington Post: Planned Parenthood Taps Baltimore Health Commissioner As President
Wen, 35, immigrated from China with her family as a child. Her family relied on Medicaid, food stamps and Planned Parenthood for health care as she grew up in California, she said. She succeeds Cecile Richards, who ran the organization for the past 12 years and whose background is more political. Richards was deputy chief of staff to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and is the daughter of former Texas governor Ann Richards. (Bernstein, 9/12)
The Associated Press: Planned Parenthood Picks Chinese-Born Doctor As New Leader
Wen graduated summa cum laude from California State University, Los Angeles and earned her medical degree from Washington University School of Medicine before becoming a Rhodes Scholar. Early in her tenure as Baltimore's health commissioner, she provided strong leadership as the city was wracked by violent protests related to disputed police actions. She expanded trauma and mental health services, and secured funding for a program designed to treat gun violence as a contagious disease. (Crary, 9/12)
